UROP Openings

Advance living wages tool: Help build the first ground-truthed living wage estimates for counties in the United States.

Term:

Spring

Department:

11: Urban Studies and Planning

Faculty Supervisor:

Amy Glasmeier

Faculty email:

amyglas@mit.edu

Apply by:

June 1, 2020

Contact:

Amy Glasmeier, amyglas@mit.edu, 814 777 2814

Project Description

Advancing living wages: build the first ground-truthed living wage estimates for counties in the United States. Be a part of a national movement to raise wages and help improve the longest continuously operating living wage calculator. Become conversant in economic data and statistics and help us make better information available from the ground up. Make friends across the country and help raise the minimum wage. We will use the data to assess the percentage of local families and individuals who can earn living wages based on local employment opportunities. Write and produce media features that utilize collected data to advocate for living wage employment. Support local groups advocating for living wages. Data will be hosted on the MIT living wage site, and form the basis of new estimates for the tool. Develop unique ways to use Google Analytics to inform media stories about the importance of living wages. Many different data sets are available to use in conjunction with the living wage tool, based on the professor's collection of data of all sources.

Pre-requisites

An ability and desire to curate and timely and accurate statistical data. Develop clever methods to extract and format data that can be updated. A desire to help improve the livelihoods of all Americans. Interest in improving writing skills for public use. Willing to work in teams and help your fellow students on the project. Experience with Google Analytics.